The Lincoln Squirrel – News, features and photos from Lincoln, Mass.

Water Department still has plant operator vacancy

At a sparsely attended June 9 Water Commission forum on Zoom, officials explained that the Water Department is hoping to hire another water treatment plant operator after the new fiscal year starts on July 1. 

The department has been short-staffed for some time due to several departures last year and a statewide shortage of qualified operators. At one point there were only two on the job, although the state Department of Environmental Protection requires four in Lincoln. There are now three full-time operators; the fourth spot is being filled by part-time workers until the department can advertise for another full-time licensed operator after the start of the new fiscal year on July 1.

The staff vacancies have cost the department a substantial amount of money because it’s been forced to hire expensive contractors to fill the gaps. The widespread shortage of operators “feels like it’s going to be a gating factor for some time to come, cost-wise,” resident Rick Rundell commented.

Hiring less qualified people and training them on the job would seem like a sensible plan, “but without certain credentialing, very limited in terms of what they can actually do,” Water Commissioner Michelle Barnes said. However, Minuteman Vocational Technical School has a training program for water treatment plant operators that could be a source of apprentices who can do some limited work while also studying for their licenses.

The 9 a.m. forum, which was marred by technical glitches at times, went over the Water Department’s spending requests for fiscal 2021. The department proposes to raise its operating budget by 38% and borrow $270,000 for capital items. That bonding came after two previous bonds totaling $1.98 million that were authorized in 2019 as well as significant hikes in water rates and the operating budget this year.

My Turn: donate to South Sudanese affected by pandemic and racism

Editor’s note: for more background on the SSEF, see “South Sudanese organization offering programs in Lincoln” (September 19, 2017).

By Ellen Meyer Shorb

In this time of thinking about race and what each of us can do, I’d like to acknowledge a wonderful local organization, the South Sudanese Education for Families, and suggest you consider donating to them. What they need right now is money.

SSEF was started 20 years ago by Susan Winship of Lincoln to support the “lost boys” of South Sudan who escaped a civil war to come to Massachusetts. SSEF now supports their families. Many of you have helped over the years.

Due to the pandemic, almost all of these families have at least one person who is unemployed. Several have fallen ill and two have been hospitalized because of the virus. Consider a donation to the SSEF Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund.

In addition, the Black Lives Matter protests have brought up painful thoughts of how racism has touched each of their lives. SSEF is addressing institutional racism by providing scholarships for preschool education. Many of these families are not able to send their kids to preschool because of cost. State assistance programs, such as preschool vouchers and Head Start, are overwhelmed with applicants. This year there are 31 South Sudanese children who want to go to preschool and SSEF hopes to provide up to 95% of their tuition. Contribute to the preschool program here.

For questions, text Susan Winship 781-424-8774. Thank you for your generosity.

Ellen Meyer Shorb
99 South Great Rd., Lincoln

”My Turn” is a forum for Lincoln residents to offer their views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnites. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.

FinCom shares property tax information

Finance Committee chair Andy Payne gathered the following information about current property tax bills. He adds this disclaimer: “The state Department of Revenue is not providing the ‘average single-family tax bill’ for towns with senior exemption programs, notably Sudbury and Concord. The values for those towns were imputed from the tax rate.” Click any image to enlarge.

The official 2020 Town Meeting web page includes the financial section and warrant, the FinCom’s presentation of the proposed FY21 budget, and a memo on what changed in the proposed budget after Town Meeting was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

My Turn: Reelect Lynn DeLisi and Rick Rundell to Planning Board

By Ken Bassett and Mary Helen Lorenz

This delayed Town Meeting [period] includes what I consider two important elections for seats on the Planning Board: a seat held by Lynn DeLisi and one by Rick Rundell. Both Lynn and Rick are running for reelection. Mary Helen and I support their reelection based in no small part on their role in making the business of the board run more smoothly with greater reliance on professional staff, heightened respect for resident’s needs, and efforts to look to future needs of the town.

By contrast, we do not support Bob Dominitz’s run for a Planning Board seat which he lost in 2015 after 12 years on the board. During his tenure, I was before the board on two projects that Bob opposed as having the potential for significant negative impacts — the revitalization of the Mall with its accommodation of the new post office, and the replacement of the Stearns Room at First Parish Church Lincoln. Both projects were ultimately approved, but not without Bob’s numerous claims of potential impacts that in the end were not substantiated. It is Bob’s negative view of planning and problem-solving that, if he is elected, will not serve this town well as we face important challenges in a changing world.

We strongly urge your support for the reelection of Lynn DeLisi and Rick Rundell.

Sincerely,

Kenneth Bassett and Mary Helen Lorenz
37 Page Rd., Lincoln

”My Turn” is a forum for Lincoln residents to offer their views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnites. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.

My Turn: Many thanks for food assistance over the summer

By the Lincoln School Committee and Becky McFall

The Lincoln School Committee and Administration would like to thank the First Parish of Lincoln and the METCO Coordinating Council (MCC) for helping to bridge the gap of meal assistance over the summer months for Lincoln, Boston, and Hanscom families.

Families receiving meal assistance since the school closure in March received their final meal delivery yesterday from the schools. With these deliveries, families were provided with grocery store gift cards to support families with providing healthy meals for their children through the summer.

The First Parish of Lincoln approved an emergency grant of $14,800 to be used to continue meal assistance to qualifying children in Lincoln and Hanscom through the summer months. These funds will provide lunches for 37 children. The MCC provided $4,000 in gift cards to Boston families supporting eight Lincoln School children. We are extremely grateful for the generosity of our community members.

Sincerely,

The Lincoln School Committee
Becky McFall, Superintendent of Schools

”My Turn” is a forum for Lincoln residents to offer their views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnites. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.

My Turn: Reelect Rundell and DeLisi to Planning Board

By Joe Robbat

This year’s election is important. We need to reelect Rick Rundell and Lynn DeLisi to the Planning Board because, like their current board colleagues, they are committed to town planning — the board’s most important contribution to the town, in my view.

Thoughtful, prescient land use recommendations to town meetings from Planning Boards dating to the 1930s caused many of us to move to Lincoln and raise children in this bucolic landscape. The Planning Board has led the way and now they are leading again as the town envisions and plans. It is only the Planning Board who has the responsibility and tools to do so.

Rick is a proven town leader, having chaired the board in the past, and brings to it important public and private-sector land use skills. He is an architect whose insights are helpful to the boards deliberative process. I know Rick and his wife Virginia (who was on the board of Friends of Modern Architecture). I only know Lynn from being in front of the board as an applicant. I found her gracious, welcoming, and helpful. They are both sensitive to applicants and believe in the benefits of living in community.

Please vote next Monday, June 15.

Joe Robbat
151 Old Concord Rd., Lincoln

”My Turn” is a forum for Lincoln residents to offer their views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnites. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.

My Turn: (Re)-elect Domnitz to the Planning Board

By Sara Mattes

I first met Bob Domnitz when I was the Board of Selectmen’s liaison to the Planning Board. I have watched Bob, over his previous tenure, navigate tough issues, come up with innovative solutions, engage with citizens with respect, and sometimes be on the receiving end of blasting critique. All the while, he maintained his droll sense of good humor.

First and foremost, Bob demonstrated over and over his sense of duty to the community as a whole, and the importance that all of us be part of critical decisions about directions for our town through the Town Meeting vote. Bob is “old school” that way — he trusted the messy business of democracy, encouraging debate and discussion, seeking full participation, and weighing all points before declaring his own.

[My role on the Planning Board] was only advisory. While I did not agree with him on all issues, I always respected his commitment to inclusiveness and open debate. He always brought all of us in to make the final decision

In addition to his role as collaborator in chief, I watched him navigate the tricky world of cell towers. His legal and technical expertise was critical for us to bring cell coverage to the town while making every effort to have as little deleterious impact on abutters, and where possible, bring revenues into the town. This was not easy. With the increased use of cell phones, demand for coverage increased, but so did resistance to having a tower looming from a neighbor’s yard.

The town faces many planning challenges ahead, not the least of which is the effort to revitalize South Lincoln and ensure the economic viability of our small retail district. Bob has demonstrated his commitment to bring all stakeholders, especially abutters, to the table, and giving them a voice and a vote. Past practice is proof that he believes that when making major changes to the town, the role of the Planning Board is to bring forward options and create a place to openly and freely debate the pros and cons of each path… and then, let the town decide.

That is why Bob Domnitz has my vote for Planning Board in this election.

Sara Mattes
71 Conant Rd., Lincoln

”My Turn” is a forum for Lincoln residents to offer their views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnites. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.

News acorns

Chat with Lincoln’s public health nurse

Do you have questions about Covid-19 prevention, transmission, symptoms, or treatment? Are there other concerns you have about seasonal health issues such as ticks and Lyme disease or EEE? Do you have general health questions? Join Tricia McGean, Lincoln’s Public Health Nurse, on Wednesday, June 10 at 10 a.m. via Zoom. Tricia will answer your questions and provide you with accurate and science-based information To attend, email bottumc@lincolntown.org. Advance registration required. 

Contribute to the town’s Covid-19 time capsule

To preserve our recollections of this time, the Lincoln Public Library is starting a digital Covid-19 time capsule. Everyone is invited to submit recollections, photographs, and videos. You can submit materials as many times as you want — daily, weekly or when you come across something that makes an impression on you. We would like to make the items and reflections open to the public, but we will only publish them or make them available in our archives with your permission. Click here to make submissions to the time capsule. If you have any questions or need assistance, please email lincoln@minlib.net. The time capsule form can also be found on the library’s website.

Town recognizes eighth-graders

The Board of Selectmen, on behalf of the Town of Lincoln and especially its eight-grade students, proclaimed the days of June 9 and 10 as “8th Grade Class of 2020 Days” within the Town of Lincoln. The proclamation was approved at the board’s June 8 meeting

Kids’ summer reading program event next week 

The Lincoln Public Library’s Children’s Room Summer Reading Program kick off Wednesday, June 17 from 1–6 p.m. (rain date: June 18 at the same time). Children and families are invited to drive to the library any time during that period to pick up summer reading materials, including information about virtual summer programs and the beloved Summer Reading Challenge. 

Families will remain in their cars while a masked staff member greets you and safely hands the reading materials to a masked family member in your car ready. The library is discouraging arrivals on foot or by bike and is asking all participants arrive and remain in their car. Come see what costumed character is on the lawn waving hello. Anyone with questions may email dleopold@minlib.net.

deCordova announces Cronin lecture speakers

Artists Mark Dion and Dana Sherwood will be the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum’s 2020 Paul J. Cronin Memorial Lecture speakers in a live event taking place virtually on Wednesday, June 24 at 6:30 p.m. Dion and Sherwood often collaborate on projects that explore how dominant ideologies and public institutions shape our understanding of history, knowledge, and the natural world. Their work exposes the human desire to tame nature and impose traits and categories on animals, plants and natural phenomena. For this live event, they will share insights into their collaborative process and offer a view into their studio practice from Copake, N.Y., where they live and work.

The artists’ collaborative installation, Conservatory for Confectionery Curiosities, is currently on view at the deCordova. Recalling a nineteenth-century horticultural hothouse, the octagonal windowed structure houses a display of what appears to be jellied desserts covered in insects partaking in the sugary sweets. Conservatory emphasizes how humans construct heightened, artificial versions of nature, particularly in cultivated gardens and sculpture parks.

“We’re excited to present this unusual opportunity to visit with Mark and Dana in their studios. Their work offers imaginative and often fantastical explorations of some of today’s central issues, including the relationship of humans to the natural world,” said John Ravenal, vice president of arts and culture for the Trustees of Reservations and the deCordova’s artistic director.

The lecture series was established in 1981 to consider topics broadly focused on changing attitudes towards contemporary art. The Cronin Lecture series is made possible by a generous grant to deCordova from the Grover J. Cronin Memorial Foundation. For more details and to register for the webinar, visit decordova.org/calendar/cronin-2020.

My Turn: Many are disenfranchised at Town Meeting

By Carol DiGianni

Since the pandemic is still clearly a hazard for those of us who are seniors, or otherwise incapacitated, it seems like an oversight not to have options for some form of remote voting on Town Meeting warrant articles.  There is remote voting in the upcoming election — why not for those of us whose economic life in impacted by the recent substantial hike in property taxes here in Lincoln? Seniors are a substantial demographic here and deserve the right to vote in their own behalf.

I for one feel it unfair to be penalized for staying safely at home while others who are more able-bodied can vote to impact (once again) my economic life. Given these extremely extenuating circumstances, I propose an immediate change in the law regarding in-person quorum for Town Meeting, in time for this town meeting, to allow absentee/early voting by mail or some form of real-time online voting. Thank you.

Carol DiGianni
140 Lincoln Rd., Lincoln

”My Turn” is a forum for Lincoln residents to offer their views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnites. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.